Micheline Golden

Age: 41
Occupation: Public Relations Manager
Number of Cruises: 4
Cruise Line: Carnival
Ship: Paradise
Sailing Date: November 22nd, 2004
Itinerary: 4 Day Baja Cruise

Overall a good experience, the Paradise is a step up from the ships that Carnival has had making the Baja run for the past few years.

EMBARKATION

Carnival cruises now leave Long Beach from the dome that formerly housed the Spruce Goose, adjacent to the Queen Mary. Early arrivals (prior to 1 p.m.) are directed to a check-in center in the rear of the Queen Mary, then asked to line up outside the dome. The main point of this new system seems to be to get you to buy discount tour tickets for the Queen Mary. Be aware that they are also available to you on the day you return from your cruise. If you have fewer than 3-4 hours to kill, you probably won't want to the tours before you board the Paradise. Just wander back and get in line.

Once embarkation actually starts it moves fairly quickly. Searches are a little more thorough than pre 9-11, but still move fast. The slowest part of the process is the obligatory photo as you board the ship. Once you get past that, you sail right through.

SHIP

The Paradise is a beautiful ship. Our past Baja cruises had been on the Holiday and the Ecstasy. Not only are they worn, but both look like cheap Nevada casinos. The Paradise has excellent use of wood inside, a dark color scheme and classic decor. Very nice.

The Paradise has only been on this end of the country for a couple months, and was a non-smoking ship on the Caribbean run so it doesn't stink like cigarettes. Further, smoking is significantly limited on this ship, making it nice for the non-smokers.

Our cabins were inside on the Verandah Deck. We always choose these for convenience -- we don't need a window, and being up that high is so much more convenient to lounges, deck and restaurants. Additionally, you have the same advantages as the Verandah suite guests -- the best stewards, with fewer rooms to care for, first dismissal when disembarking, and location, location, location! Just a word on Verandah suites, should you go that direction: The balconies do not open off the side of the ship, but look down onto the side of the Lido Deck, about 15 feet in from the sides. If you have children, as we do, it is far less worrisome to leave them in the cabin knowing if they were to fall over the railing it would only be to a deck below. Call me a worrier, but it's a concern.

Speaking of children, our experience with Camp Carnival was mixed. We were traveling with our three daughters, ages 7, 12, and 15. Carnival lists activities for up to 15 year olds, but they are not actually available on the ship. The oldest group with organized activities was 12-14, and their activities were limited and boring. The only provision for 15-17 was use of the dance club for an hour each night. There is a teen room on the ship - the Spirals Dance Club - but the opinion of our daughters and the other teenagers at our table was that it was a drag. In contrast to the adult clubs, there is no decoration, no DJ, an empty bar with no sodas or snacks available, and a few TVs with video games. It was used constantly by a few 12ish boys deeply involved in playing Tony Hawke. Converting it to a true night club for teens, complete with a DJ, dance floor and "coketail bar" would make evenings much easier.

Camp Carnival for my 7 year old was much more fun, but the hours are more limited than you are led to believe. The playroom closes from noon to 2 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. every day. Babysitting is reasonable ($6, after 10 p.m. only) and the staff is great.

There were a number of good shows. The dancers were great, the singers good, and the musicians excellent. There was a comedian on board for our ship who did two good shows. If you are interested in the shows, make sure you have the early seating for dinner. Go to the show room right after dinner, and sit throught Bingo, game shows, etc. If you don't, you won't get a good seat. Also, because of the pillars that support the show room, know that ANY seat on the lower level is better than the balcony. The curved banquettes in the back are quite elegant looking, but provide a very poor view.

The numerous lounges provide different music, and the piano bar is always good.

FOOD AND DRINK

This area is both better and worse than Carnival has been in the past. The food is plentiful, imaginative, and good. Service has been abbreviated. Formal dining service no longer includes a busboy for your table. This means you may have to wait longer for drinks, water refills, and any special needs.

We were on the ship for Thanksgiving, and thought there would be a nice meal for the day. I guess it depends on what you like. The turkey dinner consisted of several slices of turkey mounded over parsnip dressing, all doused in orange sauce. Had we known, we would have eaten at the Lido buffet.

Speaking of the buffet, the unlimited pizza was the hit of the trip for my family. My kids were there constantly, and my husband and I found the goat cheese and garlic pizza delicious. Remember that you have to order the special pizzas ahead of time, but it only takes 7 minutes.

The room service menu has been expanded and is now quite good. They offer a continental breakfast option. We asked for bagels and lox the first morning, and were quite pleased with what we received.

SIGN AND SAIL CARD

Always check your S&S card receipt! We found many errors in ours, including a $71.50 charge for two drink specials on the first day. You can always correct problems on the final day, but it's easier to do it when you sign than stand in that long line at the Purser's Desk. Also, if you prefer to make your tips in person, in cash, just go to the Purser's Desk immediately upon boarding and tell them to take the tips off your card. They did it easily for us, and we found our servers to be quite please to be tipped in cash. One room steward told us that Carnival takes a service charge out when they pass them along from your S&S card. Finally, there are drink menus located in most of the lounges. Find one and figure out what you want to drink. There are eight drinks that cost only 3.95 each, but some run as high as 9.50.

PORTS

Catalina is fun, but a very typical California beach town. If you are from the midwest, it's a treat. If you are from California, it's old hat. Don't book tours on the ship. You can book them all in town for less, from the same people. We took the glass bottom boat ride, fun for the kids, and rented a golf cart to get around. The boat ride is fun, but see if you can get on the older boats. The whole bottom is glass, as opposed to just several windows. The golf cart is bit pricey, but you get some wonderful views of the island. The drive up to the Wrigley Memorial is also nice. You can walk there if you like, but the cart makes it faster. If you are a golfer, there is a great course on Catalina, and just enough time for a round.

Ensenada is a Mexican tourist town, enough said. You can buy knockoff watches, purses, blankets, etc, drink and party, eat lunch, take a horse carriage ride. Despite what you might think it's incredibly safe there. They depend on tourism for a great deal of money. The police presence in the tourist area is to make sure all goes well. Prices were not as low there as we remember, but still a bargain. Never pay the first price, always bargain.

DEBARKATION

The new relaxed debarkation has it's pluses and minuses. On the plus side, you can now relax on deck by the pool or in any of the Lido Deck lounges rather than be herded into an area by deck. On the minus side, it actually started 2 hours early. This may not seem like a minus, but we were told we could be in the cabin until 9:30 a.m., then we would be off at 10:30 a.m. We packed up and headed for breakfast at 8 a.m., figuring on coming back for our bags by 9 a.m. They called our tag color at 8:30 a.m., while we were in line for breakfast. We had to scramble back for bags, gulp down breakfast, and run for our line.

Overall it was a good experience, and I would certainly take the cruise again. It's a good value and a nice short vacation. Nice service, nice ship.